JOURNAL of AES HOLGER LAURIDSEN.Pdf

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

JOURNAL of AES HOLGER LAURIDSEN.Pdf PAPERS The Reproduction of Sound in Auditory Perspective and a Compatible System of Stereophony* FR. HEEGAARD Statsradiofonien of Denmark A little more than a year ago we invited the late Holger Lauridsen to contribute to the E.B.U. Review an article describing his work on stereophonic sound reproduction and in particular the system that he had proposed for stereophonic broadcasting without most of the disadvantages of using separate transmitter chains for the left-ear and right- ear components. Many of our readers will recall Mr. Lauridsen's untimely death in December 1957, which put an end to his valuable contribution to the art and science of broadcasting. Recently, however, interest in the possibilities of stereophony, and particularly in stereophonic broadcasting, has become widespread, and Mr. Heegaard very kindly agreed to write the following article, which is based upon the work of Mr. Lauridsen. Editor LAURIDSEN'S M-S TECHNOLOGY by Blumlein insum-differencesignalformats, as found in the references. The experimentsof Holger Lauridsenat DanishState DUANEH. COOPER Radio, leading to demonstations in Copenhagen in Chaml_aign,IL 61820, USA 1954June, dealt with the perceptionof space, evoked in allocating two channels, a main channel (M) to direct sound and a second (S) to reverberant sound --to be reproduced with either headphones or * This paper is reprinted from E.B.U. Review, Part loudspeakemmand the qualities of the sound-field A_Technical, no. 52, pp. 2-6, 1958 December, illusion that depend on delay insertion and polarity published by the Technical Centre of the European inversion. Reproduction of spatial sound by M-S Broadcasting Union. loudspeaker array--a transverse dipole radiator (S) Reprinting here is intended to honor the seminal work in coincidence with a monopole radiator (M)--was of Holger Lauridsen in exploring spatial perspective shown to be an alternative to reproduction by spaced in sound reproduction and in calling attention to sum channels, left as M + S and right as M - S. In the -difference, or M-S, matrixing in his own research reproduction of images, by contrast, stereophonic and in the (at the time widely neglected) earlier work qualities and lateral spread were observed in the re- of Alan Blumlein. The term "MS" originates with productions of sound from the M-S microphone Lauridsen, surely one of the second-wave, if Blumlein array--a cardioid directed inmidplane at center stage is one of the first, stereo pioneers. Lauridsen's original (M) and a dipole rotated 90° for side (S) pickup.-The M-S microphone, as shown in Fig. 4 of this paper, mnemonics mid-side or mono-stereo are suggested, remains on exhibit at the Danish Radio Museum in with left and right (or twin-channel A, B) signals con- Copenhagen. Lauridsen's own writings are in Danish structed by sum and difference. Compatible M-S and German, for which translations to English, unfor- stereo relies on forming M as A + B and S as A - tunately, are not readily available. We are indebted to B in applications for which M and S are suited as the Danish Radio Corporation for their cooperation, transmission, FM broadcast, or recording channels, particularly to Dan Popescu for his assistance and to Problems with phase incoherence for spaced micro- Peter Hansen, Direction of Engineering (Retired), who phones are noted, along with mention of prior work prepared the biographies published with this paper. 802 J. AudioEng.Soc.,Vol.40,No.10.1992October PAPERS AUDITORY PERSPECTIVE AND COMPATIBLE STEREOPHONY INTRODUCTION impression of an added dimension to the imaginary room in which the music seems to take place. The There seems to be little doubt that any major im- resemblance of this arrangement to that of Vermeulen provement in the quality of broadcast sound reproduc- and Kleis at Eindhoven will be recognized [5], [6]. tion must be towards the creation around the listener Feedback may be applied to the delaying machine of a sound field having a spatial distribution approxi- in order to simulate secondary reflections, thus ap- mating much more closely to that in the broadcasting proximating more closely to the reverberation process studio than is the case with ordinary "single-channel" in a real room. Although this does add some naturalness broadcasting. It may even be said that the improvements to the effect, it is surprising to note the relatively small brought about by the introduction of VHF broadcasting, importance of the amount of feedback used. It seems leading to a better reproduction of the higher audio to be the first few reflections that create the impression frequencies, have not always led to happy results, be- of a large room. cause the radiation of strong components at those fre- The experiment is rather instructive, because it dem- quencies from a concentrated source has often been onstrates the fact that naturalness of reproduction may found to Cause a certain irritation, especially when be greatly increased without establishing any possibility broadcasting from extensive sources, such as an or- of right and left localisation. When listening to a re- chestra. It is true that the introduction of spherical cording of organ music it is quite easy to imagine that loudspeakers may to some extent alleviate this effect, one is present in a large church. but even this does not cure the trouble completely, It is perhaps not very surprising that the arrangement because the loudspeaker remains essentially a point described creates such an impression, seeing that the · source which is easily located by the listener, sound from the loudspeakers approximates to what Certain experiments which were carried out in the would be obtained in a large room. It is rather less laboratories of the Danish State Radio and which shed easy to imagine exactly by what mechanism of hearing some light on the problems of spatial sound reproduction the psychological effect is obtained. Since, however, will be described in this article. These experiments led the effect must be obtained solely as a result of the to a compatible system of stereophony which was dcm- sound pressure at each ear as a function of time, one onstrated for the first time at a meeting in "Nordisk might well ask whether the use of spaced loudspeakers Akustisk Selskab" in Copenhagen on 6th June, 1954 is really necessary. Could not similar spatial effects be [1], [2]. obtainedwhen listening with a pair of headphones? The answer was found to be yes, and the method of SOME EXPERIMENTS PRODUCING A achieving these effects is both simple and surprising. SUBJECTIVE EFFECT OF SPACE Consider Fig. 1. We have a pair of headphones to which is delivered a signal from a musical recording. The first experiment is very simple: A loudspeaker The headphones are connected so that the diaphragms is placed in front of an observer and another behind move in phase; by this is meant that, at any instant, his back. Musical signals are fed to the loudspeakers, they both move towards the head or they both move The effect of the back loudspeaker is to some extent away from it. A delayed signal from the same source to lessen the localisation of the front loudspeaker as a may also be fed to the headphones through a separate sound source. The distances between the observer and circuit, and in the leads to one of the phones in the the two loudspeakers are rather critical and the effect delayed circuit is connected a reversing switch. The is not very marked although a certain sense of roominess delayed signal may thus be led to the headphones in is achieved, phase or in antiphaseat will. The delay is again of the If, however, the sound from the back loudspeaker order of 50-100 milliseconds. is delayed by means of a tape recorder by some 50- We start the experiment by listening to the primary 100 milliseconds, the effect is completely different. The observer now gets the impression of being present in a large room in which music is played in front of him. The loudspeaker distances are no longer critical, recordmgv.,,,,. because localisation of the back loudspeaker is sup- pressed by the Haas effect. This is a modern version _ [-5-1 '1 1926, which consisted of a gramophone with two sound- I boxes placed one behind the other on the record and eachleadingto itsownhorn. [-5-3 of Thethe "Ultraphon"arrangement demonstratedmay be improvedby Kiichenmeisterby the additionin [ _ ___U.,jp_...... the observer. The lateral loudspeakers are fed in parallel of a loudspeaker to the left and another to the right of _ ] [_Z3 0'_ fSo° with delays of some 50-100 milliseconds, the delay {-5'-3 of the back loudspeaker being then 100-200 milli- seconds. This arrangement gives the observer the Fig. 1. Circuit for reproducing sound with an effect of space. J. Audio Eng. Soc., Vol. 40, No. 10, 1992 October 803 HEEGAARD PAPERS signal only. The effect is the usual one when listening shot seems to start in the back of the head and fly away. with headphones. The sound seems to come from no- Another loudspeaker arrangement has also been used where in particular or seems perhaps to be localised in for these experiments. This is shown in Fig. 3. One the head itself. We add some delayed sound, first with loudspeaker is placed in the usual fashion in front of the headphones connected in phase. The effect is that the observer and a second, which we shall call the of added reverberation and, due to the rather long delay, transverse loudspeaker, is placed behind the first and we soon arrive at a point in which the clarity of repro- with its edge towards the observer.
Recommended publications
  • Multichannel Sound Technology in Home and Broadcasting Applications
    Report ITU-R BS.2159-4 (05/2012) Multichannel sound technology in home and broadcasting applications BS Series Broadcasting service (sound) ii Rep. ITU-R BS.2159-4 Foreword The role of the Radiocommunication Sector is to ensure the rational, equitable, efficient and economical use of the radio-frequency spectrum by all radiocommunication services, including satellite services, and carry out studies without limit of frequency range on the basis of which Recommendations are adopted. The regulatory and policy functions of the Radiocommunication Sector are performed by World and Regional Radiocommunication Conferences and Radiocommunication Assemblies supported by Study Groups. Policy on Intellectual Property Right (IPR) ITU-R policy on IPR is described in the Common Patent Policy for ITU-T/ITU-R/ISO/IEC referenced in Annex 1 of Resolution ITU-R 1. Forms to be used for the submission of patent statements and licensing declarations by patent holders are available from http://www.itu.int/ITU-R/go/patents/en where the Guidelines for Implementation of the Common Patent Policy for ITU-T/ITU-R/ISO/IEC and the ITU-R patent information database can also be found. Series of ITU-R Reports (Also available online at http://www.itu.int/publ/R-REP/en) Series Title BO Satellite delivery BR Recording for production, archival and play-out; film for television BS Broadcasting service (sound) BT Broadcasting service (television) F Fixed service M Mobile, radiodetermination, amateur and related satellite services P Radiowave propagation RA Radio astronomy RS Remote sensing systems S Fixed-satellite service SA Space applications and meteorology SF Frequency sharing and coordination between fixed-satellite and fixed service systems SM Spectrum management Note: This ITU-R Report was approved in English by the Study Group under the procedure detailed in Resolution ITU-R 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Stereo Pickups & Phono Cartridges: 1958
    Stereo Pickups & Phono cartridges: 1958 - today - stereophonic sound customer . Pickup Technology by some popular stereo Pickups & Cartridges 1958 - today Some well-known stereo Pick-up from 1958 to today " URLs OF popular cartridge & pickup fire " The influence OF A so-called ' Compensation Capacitor ' on frequency response OF mm of cartridges. " the influence of a compensation condenser on the frequency response of a mm pick-up. 1958 This is typical frequency response OF 1st generation Ceramics stereo Pickup Typical frequency response of one of the first ceramic(s) stereophonic sound customers: Fig. 2.1 file:///C|/HiFiStuff/CartridgeDatabase/PickupTechnology.htm (1 of 17)6/3/2005 11:12:39 AM Stereo Pickups & Phono cartridges: 1958 - today - stereophonic sound customer Ceramics Pickup cartridge by ELAC: BST 1 (1958) [ 2.2 ] Ceramic(s) pick-up . Fig. 2.2 refers tons of A Fig. 2.2 refers to the fundamental basic construction OF structure of a piezoelectric pick- piezoelectric pickup that up, as it was usually planned with which usually supplied crystal elements from with low turntables cost. Seignettesalz Most OF thesis pickups (Kaliumnatriumtartrat) for have seignette salt crystals inexpensive record players. To based on potassium the unfavorable influence of sodium tartrate. Regarding temperature and air humidity on the disadvantageous such a crystal connection ceramic influence OF temperature (s) offers against it by far more and humidity, more favorable characteristics. Fig. however, ceramics instead shows 2.1 the frequency OF that crystal compound response of a piezokeramischen does more offer much pick-up made of barium titanate more better properties. (asking IO 3 ). Fig.
    [Show full text]
  • Film Essay for "This Is Cinerama"
    This Is Cinerama By Kyle Westphal “The pictures you are now going to see have no plot. They have no stars. This is not a stage play, nor is it a feature picture not a travelogue nor a symphonic concert or an opera—but it is a combination of all of them.” So intones Lowell Thomas before introduc- ing America to a ‘major event in the history of entertainment’ in the eponymous “This Is Cinerama.” Let’s be clear: this is a hyperbol- ic film, striving for the awe and majesty of a baseball game, a fireworks show, and the virgin birth all rolled into one, delivered with Cinerama gave audiences the feeling they were riding the roller coaster the insistent hectoring of a hypnotically ef- at Rockaway’s Playland. Courtesy Library of Congress Collection. fective multilevel marketing pitch. rama productions for a year or two. Retrofitting existing “This Is Cinerama” possesses more bluster than a politi- theaters with Cinerama equipment was an enormously cian on the stump, but the Cinerama system was a genu- expensive proposition—and the costs didn’t end with in- inely groundbreaking development in the history of motion stallation. With very high fixed labor costs (the Broadway picture exhibition. Developed by inventor Fred Waller from employed no less than seventeen union projectionists), an his earlier Vitarama, a multi-projector system used primari- unusually large portion of a Cinerama theater’s weekly ly for artillery training during World War II, Cinerama gross went back into the venue’s operating costs, leaving sought to scrap most of the uniform projection standards precious little for the producers.
    [Show full text]
  • An Anthology of Reprinted Articles on Stereophonic Techniques Copyright © 1986 Audio Engineering Society, Inc
    An anthology of reprinted articles on stereophonic techniques Copyright © 1986 Audio Engineering Society, Inc. Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 86-070767. ISBN No. 0-937803-08-1. First printing, 1986 April (all rights reserved). Except for brief passages to be used in review or as citation of authority, no part of this book may be reproduced without prior permission from: Publications Office, Audio Engineering Society, Inc., 60 East 42nd Street, New York, New York 10165. Stereophonic recording and playback dominate the that cover certain historical aspects of the subject. commercial media of records, tapes, and FM broad­ Included here is B. Hertz’s description of Ader’s historic casting, and it is to the credit of both our technology stereo transmissions from the stage of the Paris and our binaural hearing capabilities that a single pair Opera in 1881. Welch and Reed’s description of the of channels can produce auditory perspectives so Columbia Multiplex Grand phonograph is included, convincingly. since it was undoubtedly the first instrument which In the days before loudspeakers and amplifiers, could actually record stereo. Further historical papers headphones and carbon microphones were used to cover the work of Blumlein—truly the father of stereo— transmit stereo from the stage of the Paris Opera to and the many engineers at Bell Labs. listeners in an adjoining space. This was over 100 The second section of the anthology deals with years ago, and the dream of auditory perspective for analysis and experimentation in stereophonic phe­ the consumer was not to be fulfilled until Walt Dis­ nomena.
    [Show full text]
  • NTSC Specifications
    NTSC Modulation Standard ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ The Impressionistic Era of TV. It©s Never The Same Color! The first analog Color TV system realized which is backward compatible with the existing B & W signal. To combine a Chroma signal with the existing Luma(Y)signal a quadrature sub-carrier Chroma signal is used. On the Cartesian grid the x & y axes are defined with B−Y & R−Y respectively. When transmitted along with the Luma(Y) G−Y signal can be recovered from the B−Y & R−Y signals. Matrixing ━━━━━━━━━ Let: R = Red \ G = Green Each range from 0 to 1. B = Blue / Y = Matrixed B & W Luma sub-channel. U = Matrixed Blue Chroma sub-channel. U #2900FC 249.76° −U #D3FC00 69.76° V = Matrixed Red Chroma sub-channel. V #FF0056 339.76° −V #00FFA9 159.76° W = Matrixed Green Chroma sub-channel. W #1BFA00 113.52° −W #DF00FA 293.52° HSV HSV Enhanced channels: Hue Hue I = Matrixed Skin Chroma sub-channel. I #FC6600 24.29° −I #0096FC 204.29° Q = Matrixed Purple Chroma sub-channel. Q #8900FE 272.36° −Q #75FE00 92.36° We have: Y = 0.299 × R + 0.587 × G + 0.114 × B B − Y = −0.299 × R − 0.587 × G + 0.886 × B R − Y = 0.701 × R − 0.587 × G − 0.114 × B G − Y = −0.299 × R + 0.413 × G − 0.114 × B = −0.194208 × (B − Y) −0.509370 × (R − Y) (−0.1942078377, −0.5093696834) Encode: If: U[x] = 0.492111 × ( B − Y ) × 0° ┐ Quadrature (0.4921110411) V[y] = 0.877283 × ( R − Y ) × 90° ┘ Sub-Carrier (0.8772832199) Then: W = 1.424415 × ( G − Y ) @ 235.796° Chroma Vector = √ U² + V² Chroma Hue θ = aTan2(V,U) [Radians] If θ < 0 then add 2π.[360°] Decode: SyncDet U: B − Y = -┼- @ 0.000° ÷ 0.492111 V: R − Y = -┼- @ 90.000° ÷ 0.877283 W: G − Y = -┼- @ 235.796° ÷ 1.424415 (1.4244145537, 235.79647610°) or G − Y = −0.394642 × (B − Y) − 0.580622 × (R − Y) (−0.3946423068, −0.5806217020) These scaling factors are for the quadrature Chroma signal before the 0.492111 & 0.877283 unscaling factors are applied to the B−Y & R−Y axes respectively.
    [Show full text]
  • COMMUNICATIONS .S46 a ,Qf" U FORUM Sb
    00 HE7601 S@ COMMUNICATIONS .S46 a ,qF" U FORUM Sb HIGH-DEFINITION TELEVISION Robert Hopkins, Advanced Television Systems. Committee Kerns Powers, RCA Laboratories Craig Cuttner, Home Box Office Renville McMann, CBS December 5, 1985 Genga Arulampalam, Rapporteur MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Y1N MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY COMMUNICATIONS FORUM CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS 02139 TELEX: 92-1473 MITCAM HIGH-DEFINITION TELEVISION Robert Hopkins, Advanced Television Systems. Committee Kerns Powers, RCA Laboratories Craig Cuttner, Home Box Office Renville McMann, CBS December 5, 1985 Genga Arulampalam, Rapporteur HIGH-DEFINITION TELEVISION Renville McMann - CBS McMann began by stating that the quality of High- Definition Television (HDTV) is determined by the quality of production, transmission, and display. He said that CBS had conducted some studies using high quality cinema film in an attempt to classify and aefine picture quality relating it to picture resolution and the number of lines. As at present, standard TV images had a resolution in the range of 525 lines. However, the Japanese have been working on the NHK system which has 1125 lines. He said that what they were looking for in HDTV was improved resolution, improved color, wide screen aspect ratio, and stereophonic sound. As for wide screen aspect ratio, the current specification of 4:3 has been used for some time and yields a good picture. However, for HDTV a wider screen of 5:3 was first discussed and it was then decided that 5.33:3 woulo better allow the transmission of normal wide aspect motion pictures with minimum distortion. In the area of color rendition he said that the interference between color and luminance information should be completely eliminated, and color sharpness should be improved.
    [Show full text]
  • Sound Recording
    Sound Recording David Adamcyk Advanced Mixed Music Composition Microphones Types Dynamic: Operates via a diaphragm attached to a thin coil wrapped around a magnet. The magnetic flux of the coil moving in an electro-magnetic field creates a voltage. • Pros: high moisture tolerance; rugged, simple construction; can handle very high sound pressure levels (good for drums, trumpets, etc) • Cons: slower transient response, not very sensitive • examples: Shure SM57 and SM58 Condenser: Works on the principle of a capacitor: the diaphragm acts as one plate of a capacitor, and the vibrations produce changes in the distance between the plates. An electrical current (i.e. phantom power) is sent to the assembly, and as the diaphragm moves, the voltage of the current changes. • Pros: quicker frequency response than dynamic microphones, especially to high frequencies (lighter diaphragm); very sensitive; fast transient response • Cons: less rugged and more sensitive to temperature and humidity; operate using phantom power (or batteries) • Examples: AKG C-414, Neumann 184, Shure SM-81 Ribbon: Works on same principle as dynamic microphone, but the diaphragm is a thin aluminum ribbon. • Pros: although large, can pick up a lot of high frequency detail without sounding as harsh as condenser microphones; don’t require phantom power. • Cons: the most fragile of microphones • Examples: RCA 44 and the AEA R44 Microphones Directional Patterns (a.k.a. polar pattern or directionality) and Frequency Responses Note 1: Omnis generally have better low frequency response Note 2: Polar patterns are frequency dependant Note 3: The off-axis frequency response of directional mics varies significantly Source: Williams, Michael.
    [Show full text]
  • THE SORCERER's APPRENTICES: AUTHORSHIP and SOUND AESTHETICS in WALT DISNEY's FANTASIA by Daniel Fernandez a Thesis Submitted
    THE SORCERER’S APPRENTICES: AUTHORSHIP AND SOUND AESTHETICS IN WALT DISNEY’S FANTASIA by Daniel Fernandez A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Masters of Arts Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, FL May 2017 Copyright by Daniel Fernandez 2017 ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my committee members for all of their guidance and support, especially to my advisor Anthony Guneratne for his helpful suggestions during the writing of this manuscript. I am also grateful to a number of archival collections, particularly those of Yale University for providing me with some of the primary sources used for this manuscript. Likewise, I would like to acknowledge Stephanie Flint for her contribution to the translation of German source material, as well as Richard P. Huemer, Didier Ghez, Jennifer Castrup, the Broward County Library, the University of Maryland, the Fales Library at New York University, and Zoran Sinobad of the Library of Congress, for the advice, material assistance, and historical information that helped shape this project. iv ABSTRACT Author: Daniel Fernandez Title: The Sorcerer’s Apprentices: Authorship and Sound Aesthetics in Walt Disney’s Fantasia Institution: Florida Atlantic University Thesis Advisor: Dr. Anthony Guneratne Degree: Masters of Arts in Communications Year: 2017 This thesis makes three claims new to the critical literature on Walt Disney’s 1940 film Fantasia. Setting the scene by placing a spotlight on the long-serving Philadelphia Orchestra conductor Leopold Stokowski, it contextualizes his pervasive influence, as well as contributions by others that shaped Fantasia and defined the film’s stylistic elements.
    [Show full text]
  • HARRY F. OLSON December 28, 1901-April 1, 1982
    NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES H A R R Y F . O LSON 1901—1982 A Biographical Memoir by CYRIL M. HARRIS Any opinions expressed in this memoir are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Academy of Sciences. Biographical Memoir COPYRIGHT 1989 NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES WASHINGTON D.C. HARRY F. OLSON December 28, 1901-April 1, 1982 BY CYRIL M. HARRIS ARRY F. OLSON, pioneer in acoustics and electronic H sound recording, died on April 1, 1982, at Princeton Medical Center at the age of eighty-one. He had been a mem- ber of the National Academy of Sciences since 1959. During his career of nearly forty years with RCA, Dr. Olson developed several types of microphones for broad- casting and recording, high-fidelity loudspeakers, phono- graph pickups and recording equipment, underwater sound equipment, and sound motion picture and public address systems; he contributed substantially to the development of the RCA magnetic tape recorder for television and the RCA music synthesizer. Harry F. Olson was born in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, on Decem- ber 18, 1901, the first of two children. Both his father, a farmer, and mother, a talented amateur artist, were born in Sweden and had come to this country to seek new opportu- nity. Their son exhibited an interest in science and technology at an early age, which they encouraged by supplying him with a modest shop and laboratory. While still in grade school and with very little data on design, Harry built and flew model airplanes—an art then in its infancy.
    [Show full text]
  • Technical Standards for FM Radio Broadcasting in the Bahamas
    Technical Standards for FM Radio Broadcasting in The Bahamas ECS 04/2019 Issue Date: 25 March 2019 Table of Contents 1 Preliminary ..................................................................................................................... 4 1.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................... 4 1.2 Definitions ............................................................................................................. 4 1.3 Symbols.................................................................................................................. 6 1.4 Abbreviations......................................................................................................... 6 1.5 Designators ............................................................................................................ 7 1.6 Main Transmitter ................................................................................................... 7 1.7 Auxiliary Transmitters ............................................................................................ 7 2 General ........................................................................................................................... 7 3 Labeling .......................................................................................................................... 8 4. Effective Radiated Power (ERP) ...................................................................................... 8 5 Minimum Distance Separation between
    [Show full text]
  • Mono Stereo Mpx Mono and Stereo
    MONO STEREO MPX MONO AND STEREO In the FM transmission there are mainly two types of audio signals: • Mono • Stereo Stereo signals are actually more common in broadcast radio and they consist of two channels that can be labelled L and R (Left and Right) providing one channel for each of the two speakers and create the impression of sound heard from various directions, as in natural hearing. MPX The MPX FM stereo system was designed to be backward compatible and it allows broadcast signals to be received on mono equipment as well. It is composed of three parts. • The first is a normal audio signal made up of the Sum of Left and Right channels. This is the signal heard on a Mono radio and it is the same as switching the Stereo/Mono Switch on an amplifier to “Mono”. • In addition, a difference signal (Left - Right) is generated and then used to modulate a 38 kHz subcarrier using Double sideband suppressed carrier (DSBSC) modulation. This is an AM modulation of the subcarrier. • To keep the receiver decoder locked into the 38kHz subcarrier, a 19 kHz pilot tone (EXACTLY 1/2 of 38 kHz) is transmitted as well. The pilot is feeded with a 10% modulation. FM STEREO BROADCAST BAND Amplitude Frequency MPX ENCODER It is also possible to encode other information on an MPX signal together with the Left and Right audios: often the RDS signal is mixed with them. RDS stands for Radio Data System. It uses a 57kHz subcarrier to carry data at 1187.5 bits per second.
    [Show full text]
  • Surround Sound Past, Present and Future
    Surround Sound Past, Present and Future A history of multichannel audio from mag stripe to Dolby Digital Surround Sound Past, Present, and Future ilm sound, television audio, voices in religious epics, for example. and music playback formats Some formats switched this channel used to be distinctly different off by means of trigger tones when it products of industries often wasn’t needed because the track on workingFF in isolation. Recently, how- the film was particularly narrow, and ever, this has changed. The popularity thus very hissy. of surround sound in the home has Although film stereo lost favor in A history of brought these sound formats closer the 1960s and early 1970s due to together. And now new digital high costs of the magnetic formats multichannel audio multichannel technology is poised to and a slump in the film business, foster an even more consistent sound mixers continued to experi- from mag stripe approach to sound reproduction, ment with the effects channel. easing the burden on both consumer Formats such as six-track 70 mm to Dolby Digital and producer while providing high magnetic (see sidebar next page) fidelity not just to the tonality of live provided consistent signal-to-noise sound, but also to its spatiality. ratios on all channels, so mixers could use the effects channel to envelop the Origins of surround sound audience in continuous low-level ambient sounds. The effects channel The first commercially successful came to convey greater sonic realism multichannel formats were developed overall, not just the occasional in the early 1950s for the cinema.
    [Show full text]